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“MISTRESSES” EPISODE 2: THE MORNING AFTER

Picking up where the pilot episode left off, Savannah, or SAVI, as they call her, impulsively had sex with her lascivious co-worker Dominic, after being rejected by her husband, who is feeling angry due to the couple’s issues with fertility (due to his low sperm-count). We see that Savi is racked with guilt, and wants to confess to her husband, Harry. Thankfully, before she makes that horrendous mistake, Karen talks her out of it, by convincing her that she @ least needs to figure out why she did it, therefor ensuring that she won’t do it again, before she even can even think of confessing. Savi confronts Dominic, and forcefully tells him that what happened was a mistake and that it will never happen again, but Dominic doesn’t seem entirely convinced of that. Things get tense when Harry stops by the office to apologize to Savi for his behavior, which just makes Savi feel even more guilty, plus Harry gets to meet Dominic (awkward). I’ve read comments from viewers after the first episode that they think Dominic is “sleazy”, but I have to say that I like this character, I don’t think he’s all that bad. Sure, he was hitting on Savi constantly during the first episode, but that could just be innocent office flirty, which most of us have done. It may have never gone any further than that, if she hadn’t made the first real move and kissed him (a fact that Dominic delighted in reminding Savi of). So who’s the real bad person here? Savi is the one who is married, not Dominic. And what man is gonna turn down Alyssa Milano?!? I mean, let’s get real here.

Meanwhile, Karen has problems of her own. She’s still being repeatedly called by Sam, Tom’s son, and tries to avoid him. Finally she agrees to meet with him, for what she intends to be the “last” time. It’s clear that Sam is a bit infatuated with her, and she may be reciprocating those feelings, although she won’t admit it yet. But then she’s visited by a Life Insurance investigator (played by guest star Gary Dourdan), who is suspicious about the circumstances surrounding Tom’s death, because Tom’s widow refused an autopsy. So Karen has to lie to cover up the fact that Tom committed suicide, since that could lead to the discovery that she illegally provided him with the morphine that he used to kill himself. This pressure leads her to blow up @ Sam when he next shows up @ her office to see her.

April is a mess, as she tells Savi and Karen about the mysterious woman who showed up with a kid the night before, claiming to be April’s husband’s ex-mistress and mother of his son. Savi uses her connections at her law firm to look into this alleged mistress, and the woman’s story seems to check out. This makes her even more emotional, and she reacts with disgust towards Savi, after Savi tells her about cheating with Dominic. Then April goes off to look for proof of her husband’s affair, and breaks down when she founds out that it was true. Finally, she confronts the woman @ a hotel, where the woman admits the she wants money.

Of the 4 ladies, Josslyn remains the one with the least amount of outward problems. She staying in Savi and Harry’s guest-house, and dispenses advice to Harry about making up with Savi. She ends up spending some time with a woman named Alex (Shannyn Sossamon), who is one half of a lesbian couple who were clients of hers, looking to buy a house together, but are now hesitating. Josslyn gives Alex relationship advice, but it’s clear that something stronger than just friendship with is developing. I’m particularly interested in seeing where this goes. So far, the writers haven’t shied away from showing “interracial sex”, I wonder if they’ll be as open when it comes to showing lesbian sex? We’ll see.

While the pilot episode did a fine job of introducing us to the characters, and setting up the conflicts in their lives, I feel that this episode, written by Rina Mimoun, really cemented the characters and their stories. I give much kudos to the cast, who all had moments in which to show a range of emotions, from anger, to sadness, to humor. Somehow, despite the serious subject matter of the show, they still managed to sneak in little bits of humor. Even when it’s unintentional, such as April crying while shouting that her husband is a “dead, lying, sack of ass”! Which has to be a candidate for quote of the year. And there’s some more over the top bits, like Josslyn in a Viking costume, as “Thor’s girlfriend,” and taking a phone call from Alex while she has a man tied up in her bedroom. This show is the best mix of drama and humor since the early seasons of Desperate Housewives. I was intrigued enough last week to give this show another shot, but after tonight’s episode, I believe I’m ready to fully commit to this series. I really want to see where this goes. This episode gets a grade of: